Book Review

By Simon Grey, on October 28th, 2011

Like A Financial Analysis of al-Qaeda in Iraq, this book is rather technical and highly academic in approach.Unsurprisingly, it is a rather boring read for the most part.Furthermore, the book isn’t particularly insightful.

There were some who apparently claimed, presumably around the time this book was written, that capitalism was responsible for causing and perpetuating apartheid and racial division.Williams seeks to correct this misconception, and does so quite adequately by pointing out how it was government legislation that created, enabled, and perpetuated apartheid and the corresponding racism.Williams’ arguments are not unique or original, in a sense, because racial biases can, and have been, easily corrected on the free market by the “inferior” race offering lower prices for their labor.The reason this didn’t happen in South Africa was because the government forbade competition, or elsewise severely hindered it.

Williams’ book, then, is useful primarily as an academic resource.It is not easy or enjoyable to read, part of which is due to the structure of the book.For me, it only reinforced my beliefs in the general equitability of the market.I imagine that the same will be true for those who are inclined to read this.My recommendation is to only read this book if you are doing research on South Africa or apartheid.